During an official meeting between foreign ministers, first time after 2012, Japan’s Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida and China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi discussed several bilateral issues.

“We had an open exchange of views aimed at improvement of relations between our countries,” Japan’s foreign minister told reporters after the meeting.

Japan’s foreign minister also stressed importance of a meeting between Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and China’s Prime Minister Xi Jinping, which may take place during the upcoming APEC (Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation) summit due in Beijing next week. However, Kishida said organisation of the meeting “is not agreed fully as yet.”

During the talks with Wang Yi, the Japanese foreign minister expressed “deep concern” about a new conflict between the countries - since this March near Japan’s Ogasavara Island are appearing foreign vessels, which by special trawls collect from the sea bottom valuable corals. Tokyo claims the vessels are Chinese and the diplomatic services asked Beijing several times to settle the issue.

The relations between Tokyo and Beijing have been tense due to the territory conflict around the Senkaku Islands (Diaoyu). Japan refuses to negotiate the issue saying there is no dispute around the islands as they are Japan’s territory. China would not agree with the position and insists the islands were taken from Beijing by force along with Taiwan and should be returned, as under the terms of capitulation of 1945 Japan refused from the territories it had annexed by force.